Longing for You
by Lone Watchman
Summary: Van is returning to Earth in order to make Hitomi his wife, but when he reaches the Mystic moon, he finds out that Hitomi has forgotten him. Van refuses to accept this, and forces her to come back to Fanelia with him in order to make her remember him.
1. Longing for You

Ok..um... This is my second story, so go easy on me, please. But please review this because then I feel loved and I'm happy. so yeah... Any people or names that seem familiar are not based on any other characters (except the ones from Escaflowne, of course). So here it goes...  
  
She was falling into a pit. It seemed like forever and her heart was racing. She was so scared! She wanted someone to hold her while she cried, but she knew this wasn't possible. There was no point in living. She wished that she would hit the ground soon, and get her death over with. She just didn't care anymore. Then, suddenly, there was flash of light as blinding as the sun. She squinted, but a shadow fell across her face. She then looked into beautiful brown eyes that reminded her of something long ago. Something or someone that she knew was important to her, but she just couldn't remember. She glanced at the necklace he was wearing, and saw that this person was wearing her grandmother's necklace. But hadn't she lost it? She searched the face, but all she saw were shadows. As her hand started to automatically reach out to this other human being with dazzling white wings, she was amazed because she trusted this person without even knowing who he was. Wait...he? But it had to be a he. She could sense it. When their hands met, it sent a rush through her body and her heart started to beat faster. She loved the way how his hand fit perfectly hers...as if they were meant for each other. Like how her heart used to beat around Amano Sempai. But somehow this was different...this was deeper than her puppy love for Amano Sempai. She felt a rush of joy, and as he pulled her near him. She felt a longing to kiss him. She couldn't take her eyes off his eyes. She saw nothing else except for his eyes...They were so enchanting, and she felt herself drawn into them. He was pulling her closer to him, and his arms felt so comforting. They were telling her that everything will be alright. As his arms encircled her, she felt herself surging upward into the endless blue sky, out of the bottomless pit. She wanted to stay this way forever...  
  
"Holy Monsters Two! Hua!"  
  
Her eyes snapped open and she bolted up in bed, and she saw a monkey look alike of about 14.  
  
"Grow up!" she said as she threw a pillow at her brother, Kevin.  
  
"You first!" came his usual reply.  
  
She glanced at her clock and saw that it was 8:25 am. "AAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!" she screamed as she tried to jump out of bed, but the sheets tangled around her and made her trip. This then set off a chain reaction of her falling onto her dresser with clothes flying everywhere, and also into the half eaten bread and jam on top of her dresser.  
  
"I need to clean my room" she mumbled as she sunk to the floor in pain.  
  
"Hitomi! You'll be late so stop dilly-dallying!" said her mom.  
  
"Yes that is exactly what I'm doing" she grumbled as she rubbed her butt.  
  
She glanced at the clock, and stood there for a few seconds with her mouth open. It now read 8:30 am. Where did all the time go? She now had 20 minutes to change, try to look some-what presentable, and get to school. And so, a normal morning started at the Kanzaki house.  
  
A shirtless boy with sweat all over his body bolted up in his bed. He wildly looked around him, until he realized that he was in his room. He had a tangly mass of jet black hair that complimented his deep brown eyes that seemed to hold a wisdom that went beyond his 20 years.  
  
He put a hand to his forehead and allowed himself to fall back in his bed. He looked to his right and saw the empty side of the bed.  
  
"Pretty soon there will be another woman lying next to me here". Van sighed as he turned away. It seemed like this thought caused his pain or repulsed him. His mind drifted back to the dream. He couldn't remember it very well. He just remembered seeing a body fall into a bottomless pit. He remembered how he felt an urge to save her, so he ripped off his shirt and dove in.  
  
"But that is weird" he thought to himself. "I would never show my wings, until the right time came". His mind then drifted to a time where his heart had hammered in terror when he had seen a girl fall into a bottomless pit. Just thinking of her made his heart race. He turned over and felt the cool sheets on his body.  
  
Even after five years, I still love her...I still need her...I still want her. He remembered how his heart had leapt for joy when she conveyed her feelings of love to him. He wanted to shout to the entire world. He vowed that he would never let her go. She would stay by his side and be his forever. But he remembered the pain her had felt when he let her go. He knew that he really loved her when he let her return to her homeland because that was where she belonged.  
  
"Hitomi..." was the last word on his lips as he slowly sank back into a dreamless sleep.  
  
"Wings... white wings...like an angel".  
  
Suddenly a huge tongue gave her a big kiss! She laughed as she blinked and looked at Ririshii, her pet golden retriever.  
  
"I'm so sorry that I'm being a bad owner and daydreaming like that." She gave the dog a good rub, and watched as he rolled over on his back in ecstasy.  
  
"Hitomi!" She looked to her doorway and saw her mom standing in their massive doorway. "It's Yukari!"  
  
"I'll be right back Ririshii". She ran to her the front entrance and thanked her mom as she took the phone.  
  
"Remember only 15 minutes until you should start studying again" her mom said as she handed over the phone.  
  
Somehow, her mom always made her feel guilty about enjoying herself. But Hitomi knew that it must be embarrassing for her to have daughter who hadn't gotten into Tokyo University the year before. She sighed as she remembered the sadness she felt when she had seen her parents' disappointed looks. That disappointed look was worse than them yelling at her. "I must and will get into Tokyo U this year!"  
  
She only talked to Yukari for five minutes that day because she had felt inspired to study. They talked about how Yukari was doing at Tokyo U, about her and Amano Sempai's over sea's relationship, and about stuff in general. Hitomi missed her best friend so much, but they had faithfully remained good friends and called each other every week. Next year, I will be at Tokyo U with her! This jolted her back to reality, and she said a hasty good-bye and added a promise that she would call next time. She played with Ririshii for five more minutes, and then put him in the backyard. I will not relent! I will study! Study, study, study! Studying Hitomi! That's me! Studyi...  
  
Hitomi's mouth watered as she looked at a fresh batch of cookies out on the table. No! Focus! Must Focu.. her mind cried out in horror as she saw her brother sneaking into the kitchen and she knew what his target was. She stealthily made her way behind her brother with all thoughts of studying out of her mind.  
  
"WHAT? I have to go tot the Mystic Moon? Why?" Van looked in confusion at his advisor, Kion They were in the massive library in the castle at Fanelia. Books in all languages lined the shelves. Van looked in admiration at the collection of books that had started with his great-grandfather.  
  
"My liege, another energist is needed to run the country. Fanelia will have no power if you don't get another energist."  
  
"So are you saying that I would need to get an energist every five years?" asked Van.  
  
"Of course not, your highness" came Kion's immediate reply. "Because the country has grown so much, the city needs more and more power, so in order for you not to have to go out every five years to get a dragon energist, you must kill a very, very powerful dragon. And those only exist on the Mystic Moon." But Kion could tell that he had lost the King half way through his lecture. But he really couldn't care less at the moment. "Just as long I get the king out of Fanelia long enough for Zaibach to come and help me take over, then I don't care what he does or thinks. And just think...after I take over Fanelia, the possibilities are endless!"  
  
Van's mind on the other hand was far from gaining land for his country. His mind was once again wandering back to Hitomi.  
  
"Excuse me, my grace?" Van looked into his puzzled advisor's face.  
  
"Oh. Pardon me. Did you say something?"  
  
"My liege, I was just asking whether you would be willing to meet any potential matches today? Remember, the prophecy must be fulfilled. You have to get married before 21 or else the timing to have the child of the prophecy will be off and you know there will be no better opportunity except for the near future."  
  
"Yes, yes I know Kion. The child of the prophecy will win back the mountains, forests, and fields where our gods live that our people lost long ago to the Akians. And you're wrong if you believe that I don't listen during the counsels. I know that the Akians are spreading their territory very quickly, and soon, they will have a force so powerful that they will be unstoppable. I know and understand."  
  
"I'm so glad that you understand" came Kion's oily reply. "Then you also understand why I am rushing you into this marriage. You must get married before you leave! That way, there is the security of a wife and when you get back, you can get right down to business if you know what I mean?"  
  
Van looked in disgust at the man next to him. He thought about what he knew about Kion. Kion had only been in the family since his father, and Van's father had taken him in out of pity. If Van thought about it, he actually knew nothing about Kion. Van's reply was immediate and final. "I will not marry before I leave." "Actually, I'm hoping that I will come back with a bride" Van thought to himself.  
  
"But your grace..." sputtered Kion.  
  
"I'm sorry but I must be going. I will leave tomorrow morning for the Mystic Moon. Make sure that all preparations are ready. And I leave my country in your hands while I am away" said Van as he walked out of the library.  
  
"Of course, you highness" said Kion as he bowed low and glared at the ground.  
  
"Today was such a long day! The entrance test was so hard!" she raised her arms to the sky and stretched. Then she raised her liquid green eyes to the sky in dismay. She recalled how nervous she was during the test. She had passed all the practice tests she had done, but that still gave her no confidence.  
  
"I wonder if I got number thirteen right. Actually I wonder if I got that whole section right. Well, better get going. It's going to take a while to get home anyway. Why did mom and dad just suddenly decide to move to the country anyway?"  
  
As she glanced at the forest, she thought about her grandmother. The forest smelled just like her grandmother. She sadly remembered how her grandmother would tell her storied, and how they would bake cookies together. She then thought about the beautiful pink pendant that her grandmother used to wear. "I wonder where it went. I can't believe I lost it!" Hitomi had looked for it everywhere but she just couldn't find it. "It was weird how I saw it on that boy with the wings!"  
  
Suddenly there was gust of wind that made the trees move like arms reaching to the sun. She glanced into the forest and saw... a dragon.  
  
"That isn't possible" Hitomi thought to herself. Somehow, she found herself running into the forest with her book bag abandoned at the side of the road. Her only thoughts were "I have to save him! He can't get hurt!" "What is going on?" it was if there were two people in her body. One was controlling her body while the other was thinking sensibly, but had no power. As she ran into the clearing, her eyes automatically passed over the dragon.  
  
This was a very hard deed to accomplish for it stood about 26 feet and was completely covered in scales. Unlike pictures she had seen before, this dragon only had two legs, and didn't seem to be spouting fire constantly.  
  
Just like Hitomi, the dragon didn't notice her either. Both his and Hitomi's eyes were focused on the human man at the other end of the clearing.  
  
But Van's eyes were only focused on the dragon. All his might and energy was focused on this great animal. "How is he so strong? He is a lot stronger than the dragon I fought when I was last here. I have to attack now!"  
  
Hitomi saw the boy run across the clearing to the dragon with his sword drawn. "He's so brave! Why do I feel this urge to stop him? I don't even know who he is! Why is he wearing that weird clothing?"  
  
Suddenly, a searing pain went through Hitomi's head. She felt as if here head was about to split in half, but she couldn't scream out loud to get any one's attention. Then, she saw an image. It was of the young man being stabbed by the dragon's tail from up above him. Her eyes snapped open in terror.  
  
Again, she felt herself moving without thinking. "NO!! DON"T!" screamed Hitomi as she ran to him.  
  
Van's head snapped in her direction. With a look of bewilderment he murmured "Hitomi?"  
  
"Above! Watch out from above!" she said as she ran to him. "Just a few more feet" she thought as she ran closer and closer to him.  
  
Van quickly looked above him, and saw the tail of the dragon rushing towards him. He jumped out of the way just in time, but unfortunately, his armor ripped.  
  
"Wait. This seems familiar" Hitomi thought as she watched the man run effortlessly up the tail, and use his sword to cut through the dragon's stomach on the other side. Hitomi covered her mouth in horror and sank to the ground as she watched the blood rush out of the dragon's body. "But wait...the blood is green..." Hitomi watched with an open mouth as she saw the man confidently cut open the chest and pull out a sapphire looking stone, but this stone was the size of the man's palm. It seemed like the man was a professional at doing this. She watched in silence as he ran towards her. When he reached her, he kneeled on the ground and bent his head so that his eyes were level with hers. "His eyes...something about his eyes seem familiar..the dream! He's the man from my dream!"  
  
"Are you alright Hitomi?" said the man.  
  
Hitomi finally found her voice, "How do you now my name? Who are you?" Hitomi watched as the man's eyes opened with wonder. "His eyes are amazing!" she thought to herself. But Hitomi became confused because in his eyes she saw sadness, betrayal, and pain.  
  
"You don't remember me? But how can you not? After all that we've been through. You even promised me that even when you were old, you would still remember me. I...this can't be possible.."  
  
Hitomi watched as the boy got up and paced back and forth as if he couldn't believe what he heard. While Hitomi was trying to understand what was wrong, Van's eyes, on the other hand, were looking at Hitomi and stared in bewilderment at her.  
  
"How can she not remember? I can't think right now. My mind won't take the idea of her not knowing me."  
  
Suddenly, a pale blue light was emitting from the big sapphire stone that the man was holding. Hitomi looked in wonder as she saw the man being raised from the ground. The man looked outraged, but then it looked like an idea had hit him.  
  
"Fine! Then if you don't remember me or everything that we've been through, then I'll make you remember!" Hitomi watched in horror as she saw him grab her arm. When he touched her, she felt her body rising in unison with man's. Again, she felt as if she had no power over what her body was doing.  
  
And so, to welcome her to Gaea for the second time was a cat, a princess, a knight, a king, and a mole.  
  
Lone Watchman  
  
So please review and tell me what you think!! I really appreciate the reviews from everyone (scio-chan, fantasychild2007 specifically, but thanks to everyone else too!!) I had fun writing this and I hope that you had fun reading it. If I get enough reviews, then I'll write another story soon!! So review, REVIEW!!!!! 


	2. Dragon King

Thank you everyone for all the reviews you've given me! It's really helped me write this! Thank you so much! Hope you like the story so far! Sorry this story took so long, but it's because I've been studying for finals like the good student that I am. (some extra info, glomp is a verb that is when a person hugs you very tightly and this can be accompanied with a sprint, jumping into the victim's arms, and then hugging tightly. It's actually quite fun even though it sounds weird. )  
  
Dragon King  
  
She heard people talking around her. There were so many voices. She tried to pretend that she was still unconscious, but this was hard because she felt two people poking her arms from both sides.  
  
"I hope you haven't killed her, Van," said a masculine voice.  
  
She heard Van cry indignantly, "I didn't! Why do you keep on saying that?"  
  
"Don't worry Van-sama," said a cat-like voice. "Hitomi can handle more than this."  
  
"How do they know my name? This is way too weird. I guess I can't pretend that I'm unconscious forever so might as well wake up," thought Hitomi.  
  
Hitomi slowly opened her eyes and looked around her. She saw that she was in a clearing that was surrounded by trees from all sides. She looked to her right and saw a beautiful man of about 24 staring at her with sky blue eyes. She saw his eyes light up as he saw her awake.  
  
"Hitomi!!" he screamed as he glomped her. She screamed and tried to drag herself away from him, but he was holding on too tightly.  
  
Hitomi then heard "Let go of her you pervert!"  
  
She felt the blonde haired beauty pulled off her, and opened her eyes to see the dark haired boy who had fought the dragon pull the beauty away from her and throw him.  
  
"You are so stupid!" screamed the girl that was on her other side. Hitomi gaped in shock at this girl..er...cat. The best way to describe her was that she was half-cat and half-girl. She had pink hair and had stripes all over body. She was in a crouching position as if ready to attack. "You shouldn't touch a girl like that," hissed the girl.  
  
Hitomi watched as the girl slowly crept towards the blonde haired man, and she saw him slowly back away into a bunch of trees.  
  
"Nice kitty" said the blonde haired man.  
  
"How many times have I told you not to call me that?!?!" screamed the cat girl as she launched herself into the trees where he was.  
  
His answer was replaced with yells of pain and the furious movement of the trees.  
  
"Are you hurt anywhere?"  
  
Hitomi turned her head and saw the dark haired boy intently staring at her.  
  
"Um, yes. Yes I'm fine" said Hitomi.  
  
There was an awkward silence as they stared at each other in contemplation. Hitomi could faintly hear the yells of pain from the blonde haired man.  
  
"It actually sounds like he is running," Hitomi thought to herself.  
  
"Well....I guess I'll introduce all of us then" said the dark haired boy in order to replace the silence. "My name is Van. The blonde haired man who inappropriately touched you was Allen. The girl who is at the moment trying to kill him is Merle."  
  
Before Hitomi could rely, she heard "And my name is Princess Millerna although I will allow you to call me Millerna."  
  
Hitomi turned her head and saw a young woman of about her age, dressed in rich, red velvet clothes. The clothes fit her body perfectly and she seemed to float as she gracefully walked so that she looked like a princess...but then again, she announced herself as a princess right?  
  
"Millerna! What are you doing here?" asked Van as he stood up in shock.  
  
But before he could answer, Allen came bounding out of the trees with Merle right at his heels. Allen's clothes were all torn and he had lots of scratches all over his body. He desperately looked around the clearing as saw Millerna. He changed his course and started running in Millerna's direction.  
  
"Save me!!!" he wailed as he ran behind Millerna.  
  
Millerna closed her eyes and tilted her head towards the ground with clenched fists. She seemed to be counting to ten, and muttering something that sounded like 'Why did I ever fall in love with this guy?'  
  
She then opened her eyes, but it still looked like she hadn't fully regained control of her emotions.  
  
"Millerna!! Protect me!" wailed Allen again.  
  
After this statement, Millerna totally snapped.  
  
"Eat him Merle!!!" she screamed as she moved out of the way for Merle and pointed a finger at Allen.  
  
"STOP IT!" yelled Van.  
  
Four pair of eyes turned in his direction. Merle was on top of Allen with his hand partially in her mouth, while Millerna was panting next to the pair of them.  
  
"This whole place is like a zoo" he muttered in disgust. "Merle get off of Allen. Allen, come with me. Millerna, get reacquainted with Hitomi. You'll find that she is...ah...forgot a few details about the past."  
  
"Reacquainted?" muttered Millerna as she watched Allen and Van disappear into the forest.  
  
"What do you think your doing?" hissed Van as he stood looking at Allen with contempt.  
  
Allen showed no signs of fear as he coolly looked into Van's eyes.  
  
"From what I gather, Hitomi's memory has been erased or lost?" asked Allen with raised eyebrows.  
  
"Answer the question," hissed Van again.  
  
"Calm down Van," said Allen, "you're starting to look like Merle. Fine then. I'll tell you why I'm acting this way. Since I didn't get Hitomi last time, I've decided to ...ah...how shall I out it? Use a different strategy. I'm going to steal her back from you Van, just like you stole her from me. But then again, she doesn't remember, so we're both starting from scratch."  
  
"This is no time to be playing games Allen. I don't have time for this because I need to get back to Fanelia to give my people the energist. So don't mess with me right now!" Van said as he jabbed Allen in the chest with his finger.  
  
"Just don't get in my way," replied Allen as he sauntered out of the trees. When he saw Hitomi watching him, he put his facade back on and leapt across the clearing towards Hitomi so that he could glomp her again. Hitomi looked slightly apprehensive and slowly inched away as he came closer and closer.  
  
Suddenly, just before Allen was going to leap onto Hitomi, Van appeared next to Hitomi hit Allen on the face with the sheath of his sword.  
  
"What was that for?!?" screamed Allen as he felt his face.  
  
"There was a mosquito on your face" replied Van in complete innocence. "It was going to bite you."  
  
"Liar," muttered Allen as he climbed to his feet.  
  
"All right." said Van. "I am going to travel to Fanelia, so I can give my people the energist to power the city. Hitomi travels with me." At this statement, he looked pointedly at Allen. "Anyone else who wants to come is welcome. Princess Millerna, you had better come with me since you have no proper escort. When we get to Fanelia, I shall arrange an appropriate escort for you."  
  
"She does have an escort," came a voice from another side of the clearing. Out from the shadows stepped a fat little man that had on tiny glasses. The best way to describe him is that he is a cross between a mole and a man. This is why Hitomi thought it was hilarious when he introduced himself as Mr. Mole.  
  
"What are you laughing at young lady?" he asked when he saw Hitomi sniggering into her hands. He looked slyly at her as he said, "You should be more respectful since I know how to get you back to the Mystic Moon."  
  
Hitomi looked questioningly at him.  
  
"Mystic Moon," said the Moleman as he pointed at the Earth.  
  
Hitomi stopped laughing right away and went deadly still. She stared at him as she searched for the answer.  
  
"Nope! Won't give you the answer until I get some food and shelter from you," said the Moleman as he turned away, laughing.  
  
"But the nearest inn is at least half a day's walk!" exclaimed Millerna.  
  
"Well then we'd better started shouldn't we?" said Van. "When we get to the inn, you tell us how to get Hitomi back to the Mystic Moon. Let's go then. After you Princess." Van stepped aside as Millerna walked past him. He then helped Hitomi get up.  
  
"Don't worry. We're going to find a way to get you home." He looked at the ground in embarrassment. "I was being irrational and wasn't thinking at the time. For that, I apologize. It's just that I couldn't handle the situation at that moment, and so I acted without thinking. It shall never happen again. But I swear to you, I will find a way to get you back home," said Van vehemently.  
  
"I know," said Hitomi simply as she walked away following Millerna.  
  
Van was taken back for a moment. He stood there watching her walk away when suddenly he was jolted out of his thoughts by Allen who was looking suspiciously at him.  
  
Allen sidled up to him and asked casually, "So...what were you talking about?'  
  
"Oh nothing much" said Van. "She just told me that she wanted me right here and now, and that she didn't care who was watching. But I told her to wait until our wedding day."  
  
Van smiled to himself as he walked away, but he could picture Allen's look of horror without even turning around.  
  
Hey everyone! I bet you are all surprised with this new side of Allen, but I was randomly walking through the halls at my school, and I was thinking about doing something in the story that would totally be out of the ordinary and bizarre. But I couldn't think of anything, and then I was these people glomp each other (that sounds nasty, but it isn't) and I thought about Allen glomping someone and somehow in my crazy messed up brain, it worked. So I know I just totally changed the character of Allen, but I don't care. I hate Allen (actually I despise him...playboy), so I wanted to ruin his reputation. I'm also going to ruin his reputation in my other fanfiction called Together Forever, so make sure you read it and REVIEW it! . I have no idea why I made Van say that last sentence. Please don't think I'm some kind of pervert! That was complete randomness and ...I... I can't explain it!!  
  
Thank you for all the reviews!! Lone Watchman runs in circles and throws confetti (As you can tell I'm a girl, even though my pen name is lone watchMAN ) Scio-chan, I hope that I have finally satisfied you, but if I didn't, I wouldn't be surprised. I have to admit, your reviews are scary and intimidating, but accurate. You sound...well...evil, but in a cool way if you get what I mean. Thank You to everyone else for all the reviews!! You guys have no idea how happy I am! lone watchman blows bubbles and then plays in them When I saw all the reviews, it inspired me again (or as Van Luver would say, "I got in the mood") and I wrote this in looks at watch about 1 hour. Hope you all like it and make sure you REVIEW, REVIEW!! 


	3. The Sare Forest

So sorry that I haven't written in a long time! I've been really enjoying summer break after finals! (YAY!! ) Hope all of you enjoy the story so far!!!  
  
The Sare Forest  
  
The forest was silent. It was hard to see because of the shadows everywhere, but the dragon king was used to moving in the dark. Van waited a moment more before he signaled for the rest of the band to move. The "band" consisted of a king, princess, ½ cat ½ human type....thing, a blonde sissy, a young, plain looking girl, and a mole man. At the present moment, Millerna was glaring Van. She had opened her mouth several times to questions Van about where they were going, but Van had silenced her with a hand signal every time. The princess was not happy.  
  
Hitomi watched with interest as Van climbed a tree to see what was ahead. She laughed inwardly as she remembered how angry she had been when he had brought her here. But when he had apologized for kidnapping her and promised to get her home, something inside her knew that he meant every word. Plus, she might as well enjoy the change of scenery. For about the hundredth time, she looked towards the two "moons" hanging in the sky. Hitomi wondered how they could see the Earth, but the Earth couldn't see them. She mentally told herself to ask Van about that later. She then took another look around her. The lush forest was filled with all kinds of interesting plants and animals. What really struck her was that the animals looked way different than they would on Earth. These animals were also very territorial and would sometimes get aggressive. Van was always uneasy whenever he saw any of the animals, and he wouldn't let anyone near them. He wouldn't even let Allen near after Allen had begged, cried, and pleaded with him for over an hour. Van's reaction to this behavior was to threaten to gag, tie, and then leave Allen as food to all these animals. Allen (not surprisingly) quieted down immediately.  
  
FLASHBACK  
  
"Something isn't right in this forest. Animals aren't supposed to look like this. Maselle is up to something," said Van while the others were sleeping on blankets brought by Millerna.  
  
Hitomi looked questioningly at Van as he continued, "I haven't been to this region before. This forest doesn't belong to Fanelia. It belongs to a kingdom called Sare. The king, Maselle, is cunning, and murderous and will do anything to get what he wants."  
  
"Is he really that bad?" asked Hitomi.  
  
"No. He's actually worse. I'm making him sound like a daisy compared to what he's really like," replied Van as he glared into their fire. "About 15 years ago, when I was only a child, Maselle made a treaty with Sare. You see, back then, he wasn't king of Sare. Later that night, a celebration took place to celebrate the treaty. The next day, many of the people got sick and died, including the guards in the palace."  
  
"What happened then?" whispered Hitomi.  
  
Van still stared into the fire and refused to look at Hitomi. "The king of Sare had all the rooms and halls in the palace checked to see if anything was missing."  
  
"Was anything missing?" asked Hitomi.  
  
"Yes," replied Van. "Many things were missing. Some of the things missing were stuff like maps to the layout of the entire city, the census taken 1 year before, the layout of the fields surrounding Sare, and the layout of the entire palace. These documents were very important, and the king of Sare sent out the police to find the culprit, but nothing came up. Meanwhile, Maselle decided that it was time to go back to his palace. After Maselle left, the palace was burnt to the ground with the king in it."  
  
Hitomi's eyes opened in horror. "How? How did it burn to the ground.?"  
  
"Some people said that they saw Maselle watching the palace burn to the ground," said Van bitterly. "But after Maselle became king of Sare, the witnesses died in ...mysterious ways."  
  
"So you're saying that Maselle killed the king, but why would he want the country? Is there anything he can gain?"  
  
"When Maselle took over Sare, he added a lot of land to his territory. The only country bigger than his right now is Austuria. But I don't need to worry about Austuria because Maselle has been trying to make a treaty with King Aston for years, but he refuses."  
  
"So is this why you don't want to get caught?" asked Hitomi. "You don't want to be caught by Maselle, right?"  
  
"If we get caught in Sare, we'll be at the mercy of Maselle," said Van as he turned to stare intently at Hitomi. "Also, I won't be able to protect you if we get caught by him."  
  
"Don't worry Van!" came a cheerful voice from behind them. I'll protect her!  
  
Hitomi was surprised to feel an arm around her shoulder. She looked to her right and saw Allen. She screamed as she pushed herself away. Van then hit Allen on the face with the butt of his sword, but this time, he used the excuse that he thought he saw a bird on Allen's face. The rest of the crew then woke up, and Van refused to talk about the topic anymore.   
  
"Van's right," thought Hitomi. "Something is wrong with these animals; Maselle probably has something to do with it." As Van climbed down from the tree, he glared at Millerna and mole man who were talking. He gave them a sharp hand signal for them to be quiet. Hitomi smiled to herself as she saw Allen walk up to them and start whispering with them. A few seconds later, all three of them turned and glared at Van. Van didn't notice because he was too busy looking at the sky, but his ever faithful friend did. Merle slowly crept up behind Allen and used his back as a scratching post. She then silenced his screams by sitting on his face. Millerna stood there is shock, but her attention was diverted as Van walked up to the group. As Hitomi walked towards the group to join them, she saw Van give Merle a warning look. She immediately got off of Allen and clung to Van's arm.  
  
"Here's the plan of action. The main city of Sare is about 30 minutes away. We haven't reached the farmlands yet, but we will soon. Tonight we're going to stay at a pub to get the mole man food so that I can get the info on how to get Hitomi back. Once inside the town, put your hoods up, and don't answer if someone tries to talk to you. Let me do all the talking, and I don't want a peep out of any of you!" He looked specifically at Allen. "I will rent two rooms. 1 room's for the girls and the other for the men. After I get the rooms, everyone will proceed directly to their designated rooms except for mole man and me. I will bring you all food later. Stay in the rooms until I tell you to do otherwise, understood?"  
  
Everyone nodded their heads silently.  
  
"Than let's move," said Van confidently.  
  
Lone Watchman  
  
I know all of you are thinking, "Oh, what a pointless chapter!" But I'm trying to develop the plot so please excuse me. I know this chapter isn't as long as the others, but for some reason I wanted to make this one shorter. I'm on summer break now, so I'll be able to write a lot more chapters. I hope you all like the story so far. Thank you to all the reviewers!!! Another thing that really helped me was that in the reviews, you had a lot of questions about the plot. I tried to answer them, and your questions really helped to develop the plot. So, if you any questions or random thoughts about my story, Put them in your reviews!! Thanks so much! 


	4. Hey Everyone

Hey Everyone! I just wanted to let everyone know that I'm leaving for India tomorrow! I might not get access to Internet for quite some time, but I'm bringing my laptop, so when I come back, I'll have a lot of stories typed! I really hope you enjoy my stories so far though!  
  
Lone Watchman 


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